Imagine moving to a different country, where you don’t know anyone, and having to join a school when you barely understand the country’s culture. This is reality for exchange students like Bablina Celis, from Cancún, Mexico, who is attending Liberty High School.

Celis said moving to America for the school year was a fascinating experience.

Azan SaroshLiberty High School

“The thrill of going to a different country to live with a different family and change my everyday life has been absolutely amazing,” she said.

Things are different in America, but in a good way. As an exchange student, she had to move in with an unfamiliar family: the Guzmans.

The Washington State Department of Transportation reminds drivers to remove their studded tires by midnight March 31.

Unless WSDOT grants a weather-related extension, studded tires are only legal in Washington from Nov. 1 to March 31. With forecasts the rest of the month calling for temperatures well above freezing in most parts of the state, WSDOT does not plan to extend the deadline.

April is Autism Awareness Month. Experiences are being collected for fundraising portion of the Perspectives on Autism Day events April 26 at Eastside Catholic High School.

The evening program on the plateau was coordinated to compliment the third annual Autism Acceptance Video Game Tournament at Bellevue College from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. April 26.

Shadowing professionals in the workplace or outdoor adventures are the type of experiences sought for the auction. Also wanted are pieces of original artwork and educational experiences, such as admission to local museums.

On the first day of school, the attention of students in the International Baccalaureate Spanish class was quickly captivated by someone speaking in the most authentic, beautiful Spanish accent they had heard.

Greta Loss is actually Italian, an exchange student this year at Skyline High School. The Beat caught up with Loss to see what she thinks of her new life in the United States.

Salma MahmoudSkyline High School

“The thing I miss most is my family, of course,” she said. “And the Italian food.”

It’s time to just let Klahanie go

Please, please, let us stop writing about Klahanie.

The Issaquah City Council pushed and pushed to convince the residents of the Klahanie area to join the city. The residents rejected the idea. Now, the council is considering another study of the issue and even talking about carving the area up on a precinct-by-precinct basis, cherry-picking the spots that voted to join.

The balkanization of Klahanie is not the answer. Does that council really want to start down this road of carving up territory after election results come in? Perhaps, in future elections, only people who live in precincts that support a bond measure will have to incur the debt. Maybe people whose precinct supports a losing candidate will get an alternate City Council, so the person they choose can serve them.

“Non-Stop” is an action thriller movie that keeps you guessing until the very end. Liam Neeson and Julianne Moore star in a refreshing take on airline hijacking that smashes all stereotypes.

TV Show: ‘Reign’

If you are into period dramas with a little bit of fantasy mixed in, “Reign” is right up your alley. Although it took a little time to introduce all the subplots during the initial episodes, the first season of this show is now in full swing. “Reign” shows every Thursday at 8 p.m. on the CW and could easily become another CW hit rivaling “Gossip Girl” and “The Vampire Diaries.”